One Goodwill customer is trying to, as she puts it, “humble” the secondhand store by telling customers that donate their clothes to cut the tags off prior to donation in order to stop standard pricing reinforcement.
After a decent batch of high-quality, brand-name items were found at various Goodwill locations, featuring relatively steep price tags compared to regular items found in the store, it’s clear that buying secondhand is becoming more expensive every day.
Some people even noted that the prices of items they found a Goodwill were higher than their original pricing. For instance, one shopper found a $20 shirt at their local Goodwill location, though noted that the same shirt sold for $9 brand-new at Zara. Another shopper found a dress at Goodwill that was originally from Banana Republic, noting that it was $10 more than what it was going for in-store.
Erica Taylor, better known as @ericaetaylor on TikTok, made a now-viral video sporting several pieces of clothing on her kitchen counter, stating that no one should be selling their items to Goodwill without cutting the tags off.
Her video now has well over 6,000 comments and more than 110,000 views.
She says that Goodwill has finally caught up to the second-hand reselling market, and they seem to think they are the new JCPenney. “It’s time for us to band together and humble Goodwill. We need to remind them why they exist. Make sure to cut off all your tags, and if all of us do, they’ll have to go back to their standard prices.”
According to Erica, there is a science behind reselling, especially when it comes to pricing. She typically notes that pricing is based on the information found on the tags, including the fabric tag, date tag, style tag, and brand tag. She also mentioned the RN number, which resellers can use to research the particular item online to see what it belongs to and whether or not it’s currently in style.
“Sure, this video might piss some resellers off, and I apologize,” said Erica. “However, if you’re a reseller, then this video is not for you.”
We’re not so sure that it’s exclusively resellers who might be a little bit angry about finding clothing at Goodwill without tags. In fact, some Shoppers might find it to be a huge inconvenience.
One commenter noted that tags are very helpful for people that purchase clothes as well.
“For the love of god, do not cut off the size tags,” said another commenter. “My Goodwill recently got rid of its dressing rooms, so I wouldn’t be able to figure out if it’s my size or not.”
A few other commenters brought up other more socially conscious stores that you can go to donate your clothing, especially if you wanted to go to people that truly need it.
Someone suggested going to your mental health care provider, as these professionals often deal with those who are in need of clothing.
